Shadow Children series 1. Trey

"Of course I was scared, but I had to do it, you know?"- Luke Gardner in Among the Free

_Trahern Cromwell, formally known as Travis Jackson, sighed as the taxi pulled up in front of his once home. The home where he was raised, hidden in the basement. The home where his brother and sister, Bethany and Aaron, would ignore him and constantly complain about having an 'illegal' brother. Where his mother would always ignore him, and his father would educate him to be able to read and write._

_Trahern, or Trey, sighed again before paying the taxi driver and grabbing his bag from the trunk. He loaded the backpack onto his back before walking up the long driveway. _

_The Welsh townhouse was just like he remembered. A simple two story, or rather three story if you counted the basement, house located in Maine. The first floor was the kitchen, bathroom, living room, floor was a study, Kendall and Aaron's rooms, and a bathroom. The basement was a family room and hidden in the dark was a door to Trey's old room._

_Taking a deep breath, he knocked on the door and waited._

What if they don't want me back? _He thought, taking another deep breath. _

"_Hold on!" A woman's voice yelled._

_Trey smiled sadly, remembering his sister, Bethany. Bethany had been seven years older than him, and when Trey had left, his sister had had a steady boyfriend, good grades in school, and a spot as captain of the swim team._

"_Hel-" Bethany drifted off, eyes going wide. "Tre- Tr- Trey?" She whispered, eyes tearing up._

_Trey smiled. "Hey Bethany."_

"_Is- is- is it really you?" She asked, blond hair dangling in her startled green eyes._

_Trey nodded. "Yeah, yeah it's really me."_

"_But-but how? We- we thought- we thought you were dead. We thought the Population Police got you." Bethany stuttered._

"_Babe, who is it?" A mans voice asked. He stared at Trey with blue eyes full of caution. "Who are you?"_

"_Kendall, I never told you about our shadow brother, Trey." Bethany whispered, smiling at her younger brother._

_The guys eyes went wide. "You're an illegal?"_

_Trey shrugged. "Not anymore."_

_Bethany laughed joyfully before pulling Trey into a hug. "God, I can't believe you're alive. And, you're already sixteen." Bethany said, pulling away. "Come on in, Trey. Mom and dad are inside."_

_Trey smiled. "Are you sure they're going to want to see me?"_

_Bethany's joyful smile was replaced by a sad frown. "Mom and dad will burst into tears. We've missed you."_

_Trey smiled further. They actually missed him, they actually cared. _

"_Mom! Dad! We have company!" Bethany hollered, smiling and refusing to let go of Trey._

"_Who is it, Beth?" Their mother asked, coming in with a baby in her arms._

"_My son Timothy Trahern Gates." Bethany whispered to Trey._

"_You named him after me?" Trey asked, startled._

_Bethany nodded before kissing his cheek. She walked over to her mother who had yet to notice Trey. "Mom, let me see Tr-Tim." She said, taking her son. "Also, you might want to look behind me." _

_His mother sighed before looking back. Her response was like Beth's, complete shock. Tears welled up in her eyes as she instantly jumped at Trey. She wrapped him in a tight hug and cried softly. "Trahern." She whispered._

"_Hey mom." He said, hugging her back awkwardly._

"_Daryl, get in here!" She yelled, caressing Trey's cheeks. "My God, it is you. You're all grown up."_

"_Sa- Trey?" His father asked, eyes wide. _

"_Hey dad." Trey whispered._

_His father wrapped him up in a hug. "My boy, I've missed you so much." He whispered. "We-we had hope that you were alive, but with no word since you left…" his father shrugged. "It was a long shot. Then, then on the news they said the lifted the law and we hoped…"_

"_I know dad, I was there." Trey whispered. _

"_What?" His mother asked, scared. Her hair was turning gray, unlike the brown curls he remembered. Her eyes were like Aaron's, a startling gray._

"_I was there. I-I- I was one of the kids that got it lifted. My best friend, Luke, he's the one that spoke out and claimed to be a shadow child. I was undercover as a soldier." Trey explained._

_His father hugged him. "My little boy, all grown up and changing the world." His father whispered, smiling with his green eyes that Trey and Beth had inherited._

"_Where is Aaron?" Trey asked, figuring he should get the last reunion over with._

_His father smiled sadly, draping an arm around his wife. Bethany went over to her husband, tears in her eyes. Instead of one of his family answering, Kendall answered. "Aaron is dead."_

"_What?" Trey hissed._

"_He joined a team trying to take down the Population Police. He was killed at PP headquarters." Kendall said, smiling sadly._

"_When? When Aldous Krakenour was there?" Trey asked, his voice venom. God, he hated that man._

_Bethany nodded._

"_Trey-" His father began._

"_I-I-I was there. I was there. What if I saw him? I could have-"_

"_Shh," his father began, hugging him. "Trey, there were millions of people there. The odds of you seeing him were slim to none. Even if you had, you wouldn't have recognized him. You barely saw each other." _

"_Why? Why did he join?" Trey asked hysterically._

"_For you." Bethany whispered. "He was so mad at himself for treating you badly, that he decided to help you by helping the kids like you. He would be so proud of you. You've gown from our sweet little naive kid, to our heroic brave brother in a matter of months." _

"_He's gone, Trey, but Bethany is right, he's smiling down at you." Mr. Cromwell whispered._

"_Come on baby, let's get you unpacked. I'm sure you've got lots of stories to share." Mrs. Cromwell said, taking his backpack from him and sighing. "Well, considering the basement is a mess, you could stay upstairs with Bethany and Kendall."_

"_In Aaron's old room?" Trey asked._

"_He'd love it. He always did want to show it to you." Bethany said, slinging a free arm around his shoulders._

"_Alright." Trey mumbled._

"_I'll start a grand meal." His mother said, smiling. "And Trahern, welcome home."_


	2. Nina

**Hello? Anyone There? Does anyone read this?…**

**All well.**

**Thanks for the couple people to favorite this.**

**I was gonna do Luke, but what fun is that? So, here's an idea I've been thinking about since I read the books. Here's Nina/Elodie.**

**Disclaimer: I'm not Margret Peterson Haddix.**

In a mansion in Washington DC, a man, two girls, a woman, and an elder woman all sat around an extravagant dining table. It was the first time in seventeen years since the elder woman had seen her sister. The last time she saw her sister was when her third niece was being born.

Her third niece. The elder woman sighed. Her little Elodie. She hadn't heard from the poor girl in five years. She didn't know whether the girl was alive, or more likely, dead. The elder woman swallowed back tears as she thought about what could have happened to the little blond haired, blue eyed girl.

"Everything alright, Rhoda?" Her youngest sister asked.

"Yes, Gisela." Rhoda said, smiling at her sister.

The atmosphere went quiet again, and the elder woman glanced around the table. There was her youngest sister, Gisela. The little girls mother. Gisela had always been a beautiful woman, and a perfect housewife. The woman had long blond hair, startling brown eyes, and a face that aged gracefully.

The girl next to Gisela was the eldest child of hers. Rosaline Boehler, the eldest daughter of Gisela and Jacque Boehler. Rosaline looked much like her mother, with long, beautiful blond hair, dark brown hair, and an ageless face. Rosaline was twenty-one, and engaged to a long time friend.

Then next to her was the 'youngest'. Emma Boehler looked more like her father, with dark red hair, shimmering blue eyes, and tan skin. She was nineteen years old, and studied children's education at the local college.

Lastly was Jacque Boehler, a French immigrant. He had came to the country at age eighteen, and married Gisela. The man worked for the police, and had only been at it for a year. He had once been a part of a not so secret set of police, but he was able to get out right before the downfall. He had dark red hair, stern blue eyes, and tan skin.

A knock sounded from the door.

"Emma, would you get that?" Gisela asked her husband.

The 'youngest' nodded. Pushing back her chair, she walked over to the front door, and opened it without knowing just how much her life was about to change.

A young girl, probably only sixteen, stood at the front door with a duffle bag over her shoulder and a small, scared, smile. The girl had straight blond hair, dark blue eyes, and tan skin. She seemed to be average height, but the timid expression on her face made her look smaller.

"Hello, is Rhoda here?" The girl asked.

"Who are you?" Emma demanded.

"Um," the girl paused, clearly conflicted. "I'm, a close friend of her."

"You're barely fifteen!" Emma snapped.

The girl's body tensed, and an anger flashed in her eyes. "I'm sixteen. Please, just let me see Rhoda."

Emma sighed, "one second." She said, gesturing for the girl to come inside. She shut the front door and told the girl to stay.

"Aunt Rhoda, there's some girl at the door for you. Says she's a close friend." Emma said, sitting at the table again.

"What does she look like, Emma?" Jacque asked, confused. Why would some girl be looking for his old sister-in-law?

"Blond hair, blue eyes, tan, short, sixteen." Emma said, taking a bite of the chicken salad.

Rhoda smiled and exchanged a look with her sister. Gisela's face went pale, as her eyes filled with tears. If they didn't know any better, that sounded like Elodie. Yet, Elodie could not have possibly live these past few years with the Population Police cracking down.

Rhoda stood up and walked painfully down the hall to the front door. Her smile lit up as she glanced at the little girl, knowing it was her niece. The quirky, shy smile, the big blue eyes, and the long blond hair, it had to be Elodie. "El, is that you?"

Elodie nodded, still not use to using her first name. Her former name had been Nina Idi, the name of a girl who had died. Twice, actually. The real Nina Idi had died long ago, but the one that took her name, well she had buried the ID.

"Oh, come here, baby." The old woman said, tears falling down her cheek as she wrapped the little girl in a hug. "Oh, honey. I was so worried about you."

"I'm alright, Aunty Rhoda." Elodie said, letting her old aunt hug her tightly. She already knew the sad news about her other aunts and Gran. All had died in the past few years. Two aunts and her Gran had all died in a fire only two years ago. Rhoda had been the only to escape.

Mr. Talbot had told her the news, before sending her Rhoda's new address. Elodie guessed that the woman lived here with other family.

"Oh, darling. You're all grown up." The old woman said, holding the girl at arms length away.

Elodie smiled. "I'm only sixteen."

"Now hush, the last time I saw my baby niece she was barely eleven. Now, look at you. You're as beautiful as a Hollywood actress. Perhaps even more." Rhoda said, smiling as the girl blushed.

"Thank you, Aunty-"

"Rhoda, is everything alright?" Gisela asked, walking into the small space. Her eyes went wide as she saw the little girl she hadn't seen in sixteen years. "Elodie?"

Elodie looked over at her aunt. "El, meet your mother. Gisela, this is your little girl. Not little so much, now." Rhoda said, stepping back to let Gisela get a good look at her late daughter.

"Hi mom." Elodie said, the word 'mom' feeling foreign on her tongue.

"Elodie." Gisela said, tears sliding down her face. She caressed her daughter's cheek and smiled. "You're so beautiful."

"Thanks." The old Nina Idi said.

"I- I don't even know what to say." The woman said, grabbing the girl in a hug. "Elodie, I've always wanted to see you. The pictures they sent me, you were always a cute little girl. Now, you're a beautiful young woman."

Elodie nodded, not sure what to say.

"Gisela, what are you-" Jacque cut off, seeing the girl wrapped in his wife's arms. "Gisela, who is this?"

Elodie tensed, knowing this man must be her father.

"Jacque, this is Elodie. She's-" Gisela looked over at Rhoda, who smiled sadly. Both silently decided he should know about his third child.

The woman let go of her long lost child and walked over to put a hand on her husband's arm. No telling how he would react to the news. "Jacque, do your remember when I went to help mom about seventeen years ago?"

"Yes, you were gone for almost ten months." The man stated.

Gisela nodded. "Well, I lied. I was with Rhoda and my sisters, hiding with them. You see, Jacque, I hid for nine months, and for the tenth, I whipped myself back into shape."

The man stared at her, the answer dawning in his head. He looked over at the girl, then back at his wife. The blond hair was the only similarity. Yet, he knew the blue eyes and tin skin were like his.

It was like the whole world was being ripped out from under him. He had once believed so firmly in the Population Law. He had once been one of those people blaming third children for everything. He had helped execute many of these children.

Now, one was staring at him with his eyes.

And his wife was right, she was beautiful. She had a calm, controlled, logical demeanor. Yet, she also had a timid, shy, and scared demeanor. Unannounced to him, the first demeanor was something she had built up from playing undercover in a dangerous world. The second was the old Elodie, the one that still reared it's ugly head once in a while.

"Jacque-" Gisela began, worried.

"How- why- what-" he stuttered, shaking his head. "Elodie." He whispered, letting the name roll of his tongue. It was a name that demanded class, beauty, and elegance.

A name perfect for the girl in front of him.


End file.

Shadow Children series, Drama, Family